The Portland daily press., 1887-06-11
THE TURKISH HAREms.
~aIsuit of French officer
rpsisa Slave to Escape.
Among the many harem~.

Among the many harems,
OF the Sultan at Constantfnss.. a..
far the most important. All these Iiass''.
are built In the same style; that is, after the
manner of prison, and to see one of them
is to see them all. They are composed of
many low-structured buildings, surrounded
by high stone walls. which eifectually pre-
vent even glimpse of the interior, and with
in which reigps a silence profound. This
Is always matter Of surprise to foreigners.
and it may well be so, VIXEN we consider the
large number of women confined there. in
addition to the many attaches of the estab-
lishment. The women are watched over by
negro eunuchs, governed by a chief, and
waited upon by negroes of their own sex, all
OF whom are natives of Egypt, trained from
infancy for this special service These negro
women are tall and robust, with am album
dance of woolly bair, broad, fiat noses, and
black, shining skin, in marked contrast to
the men, who are peculiarly shaped, their
stout, short bodies and disproportionately
long legs giving them grotesque appear
ance. This is the more conspicuous from
the fact that they generally travel upon
small Arab horses, their feet nearly touch
Ing the ground. In the harem the women
ness the ae bath ne and n te toat idle
the hours not allotted to eating and
sleeping. Some few Uf them smoke cigar
cites, and singing, with the harp accom-
paniment, is not unusual. Their indolent
natures make them ayerse TO exercise, and
they mostly recline upon their dyans. In
fine weather they are permitted to take a
drive, a certain number at q time A half
dozen carriages stop at the harlem in the
early afternoon, aud are filled with occu-
pants, four being the complement of each
carriage. They wear very thin lace wells.
which permit any one having good sight to
distinguish their features even at consider
able distance. But one must be very careful
IN approaching too near these yelled beau
Ties, else he may receive stroke from the
lash of the driver One wonders often why
the women wear such thin. lace over their
faces, while the free women of Constantine
pie are muffled In thick cotton wells, with
only. small hole for nneseye. The harlem
carriages are mounted upon heavy springs,
painted in vivid vermillion and highly var.
nished. They have golden ornaments, and
are drawn by two horses. The driver is a
eunuch, as are also the mounted guards, one
at each door. When the women visit the
great bazar. kind of mardet where all sorts
Of wares are sold, the carriages drive up in
line before the entrance, the guards dis
mount ana, turning their horses over to the
care OF the drivers, accompany the women
through the baZar.
During the Crimean war, small French
army corps was quartered in Constantino
pie, placed there to protect the numerous
hospitals and to guard prisoners. One day.
when the women of the Sultan's household
were visiting the bazar young army snr-
geon, taking advantage Of a moment when
the crowd was densest, successfully abdnct-
ed one OF them. He stole with her through
the bazar, crossed the narrow street. and
concealed her in the European quarter called
Pera. II Is difficult TO conceive how this af-
fair could have been successfully carried
through, as it Is almost impossible to elude
the vigilance of the enuchs besides. the
principal actors in this escapade had never
seen each other before, and neither one
could understand word of the others lam
guage: Does 1t not prove that the desire
for liberty is deeply implanted in every
human soul? The poor slave of the harem
leaves the comforts of the only shelter she
has ever known. and joyfully intrusts her
self to the protection of a stranger, SO
weared is she of her hated bonds. Be it
said in juscce to this young officer, who was